The insight that what we can know depends critically on the models we use to know. Our concepts are models. Our languages are models. Our theories are models. We never access reality raw—we access reality filtered through models, and different models reveal different aspects. This isn't idealism (reality exists) but dependency: what we can claim to know is always mediated by the models we've built. Epistemic progress is partly about building better models, but also about understanding what each model hides along with what it reveals.
"You think you know someone through their social media. Epistemological Model-Dependency says: you know the model they present, filtered through the platform's algorithms, shaped by your interpretive framework. That's knowledge—but it's model-dependent knowledge. You don't know them; you know them-as-filtered-through-your-model. Respect the dependency."
by Abzugal February 23, 2026
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